Big Fat Idea #4

Big Fat Idea #4:

RUFAL - What it IS and What it is NOT

RUFAL stands for Rumen Unsaturated Fatty Acid Load and is a number meant to show the total unsaturated fatty acid level entering the rumen from all feeds consumed each day. It was designed to be a better indicator of fermentation disruption in the rumen than just relying on the percentage of fat added to the diet.

RUFAL - What it is NOT
RUFAL is NOT a perfect indicator of when a herd will have milk fat depression. Rather, if a herd IS having milk fat depression, RUFAL values can be evaluated to determine if high levels of unsaturated fatty acids should be included as a possible risk factor. “The Meaning of RUFAL” PDF by Dr. Tom Jenkins, Clemson University

Want to know more about RUFAL values? Download this PDF Guide on The Meaning of RUFAL Value by Dr. Tom Jenkins for a more in-depth Q&A on how to most effectively use this measure of fatty acid levels in your nutrition efforts. DOWNLOAD NOW

What are "Big Fat Ideas?"
We at Virtus Nutrition believe that Fatty Acids Matter. Big Fat Ideas from The Fatty Acid Forum is an email series created to highlight key concepts in fatty acid nutrition for dairy cattle in a simple and impactful way: One Big Fat Idea at a Time. Be sure to forward to a friend, client or colleague to share the knowledge and improve the returns from fatty acids in your dairy cow diets!